The Experience of Security in Mathematics

In this paper, we report some findings from an investigation of a topic related to affect and mathematics which is not well-represented in the literature. For some mathematicians, mathematics itself is a source of security in an uncertain world, and we investigated this feeling and experience in the case of 19 adult mathematicians working in universities and schools in Greece. The focus reported here is on ways that a relationship with mathematics offers a sense of permanence and stability on the one hand, and an assurance of novelty and progress on the other. [This document was originally published as Charalampous, E., & Rowland, T. (2012). The experience of security in mathematics. In T.-Y. Tso (Ed.), "Proceedings of the 36th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education" (Vol. 2, pp. 115-122). Taipei, Taiwan: PME.]